Foreign Affairs, Defense C'tee Chair to be Named Monday

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is expected to appoint Member of Knesset Tzahi Hanegbi (Likud Beytenu) on Monday to chair the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. Under a coalition agreement, Hanegbi will be succeeded by Knesset member Ofer Shelah (Yesh Atid).

The position has been empty since November, when former chairman Avigdor Liberman returned to the Foreign Ministry. Netanyahu promised to name Liberman's successor by the end of March in response to a Supreme Court petition by Opposition Leader Yitzhak Herzog, Chairman Eitan Cabel of the Labor party Knesset faction and Member of Knesset Nahman Shai (Labor).